Our Future is in the Stars – Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Tony was sitting on the edge of Jack’s desk the next morning chatting with his Personal Assistant Maj. Paul Davis. Tony met Paul before and at first hadn’t known what to think of the man. He then ran into the Major outside of his work environment and found out that there were two very different sides to Davis. That led to a long conversation where Tony was reminded that almost everyone has things about them that are completely different at work than they are in real life. In this case the quick to judge and always opinionated Maj. Davis who knew rule books inside and out was definitely different than the leather clad and more laid-back side of him that Tony enjoyed a concert with at a local bar.

They were waiting on three more people. Two of which Tony didn’t know and the third being Delilah Fielding whose transfer to Homeland from the Department of Defense was already underway. Tony was a little surprised that she’d jumped at the change so fast. However, when Tony expressed his surprise on the drive to work with Jack, his partner suggested that most likely SecDef had a hand in her decision. Needless to say, Tony’s curiosity was off the charts, and he was more than ready to get the finding out what the hell the secret was portion of the morning underway.

Tim was or should be shortly ensconced in a conference room where he would spend the morning being questioned by one of Hammond and one of Morrow’s best investigators. While Tony hadn’t been sure what he wanted as far as Tim was concerned, by the time he woke up, Tony had come to the decision that he wanted another shot molding McGee into a first class agent. Even though he knew that he wouldn’t have any final say in the decision, he’d placed an early call to Morrow to make sure his preference was known.

Leaving NCIS for Homeland wasn’t as big of a deal emotionally thus far as Tony had expected. Possibly at some point in the future he would have some kind of emotional response to it, but when Jack asked how he was doing during their commute, Tony was, for once, completely honest when he said he was doing fine. Things weren’t perfect at the moment. Tony wasn’t naïve in understanding that both Director Vance and Ziva as well as who knows who all from Mossad would be displeased with him.

Individually, Vance and Ziva had long reaches when you combine both their above board and underhanded connections. Together though they were a scary combination. Fortunately, Tony knew that Jack had his own resources that when combined with the various people that Tony believed he could trust were worthy of taking on the duo.

So, his personal danger had been pushed to the back of his mind as much as it could be, while his focus was on the secret that Jack had been keeping as well as the investigation into Samantha Carter’s death. When he and Jack got back to the house from their conversation at the pond, Tony ended up in his own private discussion. His though was strictly with Director Morrow, as Tim was left to fend for himself with Jack and SecDef Hammond.

During his conversation with Morrow, one of the first things they discussed was Tony’s ambition or perceived lack thereof. It hadn’t been an easy conversation, but Tony had been forced to admit both to himself and Morrow that he had to swallow the drive he had coming into NCIS when forced to weigh it against the faux family that Gibbs and Abby claimed for so many years that Team Gibbs was. Morrow had rightfully pointed out that you don’t become the youngest Detective in Philadelphia PD history without some healthy professional ambition.

However, once he reached Team Gibbs, it was made clear that you were there till Gibbs said so. At the beginning, coming off Danny’s betrayal, Tony needed the things that his new boss was selling him so badly that he swallowed the plans he had for himself prior to the job change. It wasn’t just professional ambition either. When forced to think back on his life and the things he’d accomplished, Tony acknowledged that you don’t become a two-sport college athlete on the level that he had and the positions that he played without a hell of a lot of ambition.

The need to prove Senior wrong on multiple levels had always been something that burned at Tony’s very core. It was just that the need to be accepted by something that resembled the family relationships that he never really had superseded that and Gibbs knew it. So, when talking to Morrow, Tony eventually came to the conclusion that while he wasn’t sure he was ready right that second for a Team Lead position, that he could see himself wanting it at some point in the future. He just had to get back to that part of himself first.

In the end, the two of them agreed upon a lateral move that would lead to a Team Lead position in a year or two. It seemed that Morrow was courting someone from the FBI for a Team Lead position, and the sticking point was that this person wasn’t sure how much longer he would want to continue travelling so much. Whomever Tom was talking to, had a younger child that this person was raising as a single parent. One of the items that Tom was offering was a sort of temporary position that would move into something more home bound within Homeland at the end of a set time period.

It was an arrangement that Tony not only felt that he could live with, but that excited him. The period of 24 months max would be enough that Tony felt that he could get the negative things he’d picked up during his time at NCIS out of his system. While at the same time he could get a second view of a management style that would allow him to hone his own ideas about the things he did and didn’t want to be as a leader.

Therefore, Tony had officially accepted a position that would essentially make him Second in Command of the new unit that Morrow was forming for whatever secret thing Jack was doing. Tony was a little shocked at just how excited he was about the whole situation. He was usually one that liked the concept of change less than most, but once he’d admitted that his time at NCIS had run its course, his enthusiasm about what would come next shot through the roof.

When Morrow asked him about anyone that he might want on the team, the first person that came to mind was Tim’s new girlfriend that Tony technically hadn’t been supposed to know about yet. Tony admitted, even if it was only to himself, that maybe he was a tad too invested in McGee, but in his own defense to himself, he pointed out that Tim was after all his first Probie. It was a relationship that Tony took seriously, despite what some thought, and had put a lot of work into.

So, when he’d sniffed out Delilah Fielding and got the idea that things were getting serious between her and his Probie, Tony did some digging. Having a personal connection to her new boss had been a big help, and Jack said George was amused enough by the request that he’d done some of the digging himself instead of having his new PA do it all. What Tony found out was that Delilah was one of the brightest minds at the Department of Defense and was one of their top Intelligence Analysts.

The fact that they were willing to give her up to be a part of his new team told Tony quite a bit about this new job he was taking. He was simultaneously worried and proud that Jack held such a high position in such an important job. Tony was very well aware that they didn’t give just anyone an office in the Pentagon.

A little over an hour later, Tony was sitting around a conference room table with Jack and Delilah along with two agents from the Behavioral Analysis Unit at the FBI Derek Morgan and Spencer Reid. Tim was still being interrogated and according to Jack he probably would be for the rest of the day. Despite his conflicted feelings where Tim was concerned, Tony was all onboard with McGeek being sweated a little by people who could put the fear of God and whatever else fit into his Probie.

The team was waiting on Dr. Daniel Jackson, whom Tony had not been aware that he was a part of his partner’s team. When Tony asked how the two men met, Jack made some flip comment about work and Daniel’s inability to keep his nose out of classified military business when it crossed over with his dead people and deader societies. Tony remembered being amused and suspicious, but as with a lot of things in their relationship he’d let it drop.

While they were waiting, Tony had distributed the case file copies that he’d made. Digital copies would require computer access that none of them had yet. Fortunately, Paul was used to handling all kinds of requests at the last minute. So, putting together paper copies of the case files hadn’t been much of a difficulty, according to him. As he reviewed the file, Tony took notes on a legal pad that he’d also gotten from Paul. There were a couple items that jumped out at him right away, and since they had time Tony thought maybe now would be a good time to ask Jack some informal questions.

“Lt. General O’Neill, would you be willing to answer some basic questions about Col. Carter?”

Jack arched his eyebrow at the use of his title, but eventually nodded after closing the laptop he’d been using for work.

“It says that her body was found in an abandoned train depot in Baltimore, MD. I am not as familiar with the Air Force Base locations as I am with the Naval and Marine Base locations, but I am familiar with Baltimore and that train depot. So, I know that Andrews Air Force Base is about an hour from where she was found. In her case file it lists the base she was deployed to as classified. So, I can only come to a few possibilities from that. Either the Air Force does things a lot different than the Navy or Marines when it comes to deployment, Sam wasn’t based out of Andrews, or there’s something going on at that base that plays into the hand cramp I got signing all those digital NDAs.”

“Brigadier General Carter was not located out of Andrews Air Force Base. As a matter of fact, she wasn’t based out of any Air Force Base on the East Coast. Once your paperwork goes through the system will tell you that she was based out of Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Co. However, she was more or less based out of Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Base.”

“Two questions, Lt. General,” Spencer Reid started speaking up for the first time since the introductions were made. Tony was pleasantly surprised to realize that he had some familiarity with SSA Derek Morgan, who played for Northwestern University in football at the same time Tony played for Ohio State. SSA Reid, who it seems was actually Dr. Reid, though was a complete stranger. Despite this, Tony could see some characteristics that indicated Dr. Reid was highly intelligent. He was intrigued to see how he would get along with McGee.

“The case file lists the victim’s rank as Colonel, but you just identified her as a Brigadier General. So, I just wanted to clarify what her official rank was. My second question is in regards to your statement about her more or less being based out of Cheyenne Mountain. The Air Force doesn’t have an official Base in Cheyenne. There are two bases and the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs and one base in Denver. The only thing located in Cheyenne Mountain is NORAD. So, my question is how can she be based out of a location that doesn’t have an Air Force Base, and what does more or less mean?”

The more Dr. Reid spoke, the harder it was for Tony not to wince. While he knew that Morrow would never have placed Dr. Reid and SSA Morgan on his team if they weren’t exceptional at their jobs, Tony did suddenly wonder how long it would take them to adapt to the differences between working mostly with civilians and the military. When Tony glanced at SSA Morgan to see his reaction to the question, he saw a wince that was quickly masked by a look that suggested he wasn’t really surprised about the recent turn of events.

In Tony’s experience, the higher up you got on the military food chain, the more sensitive you had to be to how you asked certain questions. Both questions were things Tony would have clarified himself, and the first question was fine. It was really the second question and how it was worded that was the problem. It wasn’t as if Tony didn’t know how to google Air Force Base locations.

Tony already had the Air Force Base locations pulled up on his cell from the Air Force’s official website. So, he knew that they didn’t officially list Cheyenne Mountain as a base they claimed on the record. He also knew that it didn’t mean the base didn’t exist. He couldn’t help but wonder if the good Doctor really didn’t know that there were bases in all arms of the military that weren’t public knowledge or if he was always that matter of fact when questioning someone.

Tony hoped that the second was closer to the issue. While the first would be technically easier to correct, the underlying naivety might be harder to deal with on a team of the level his was. Although, basically calling a Lt. General a liar wasn’t great either. In fact, it was not a good way for the Dr. to start off, because being a liar was one thing no one would accuse Jack O’Neill of being. Most of the time, he was too damned honest.

While Tony didn’t have much experience with Jack in a work scenario, he had seen him interacting with a handful of people his partner had identified as “work associates” over the years. Outside of work Jack was just about as laid back and easy going as you got. Tony had found though that no one got to the level of General of any ranking or in any branch of the military and have that person be described as easy going or laid back professionally. They were all hard working, intense, and best described as an asshole on varying levels.

“Well, I stand corrected, Dr. Reid,” Jack snarked and Tony didn’t even bother to try to hide his wince. His partner was definitely pissed off by the question. “A 32-yr. old former FBI profiler says that the base I’ve worked out of or been associated for the last 16 years of my damned life doesn’t exist. So, I guess that means I’m lying.

“Although I was pretty positive that I had an extensive history with the base myself, along with Major Davis who I thought visited a great number of times over the years. At least, I thought we did. Maybe we had some kind of mass hallucination. I better drag my ass to the nearest head shrinker and take Paul with me, because it seems I have a really big damned problem according to a man who’s never been in any branch of the military and has almost no experience with any branch of the armed services.”

Tony watched Dr. Reid narrow his eyes and prayed to the Gods he didn’t believe in that the former FBI agent wasn’t going to make things worse. When it looked like the younger man was going to speak, Tony started to cut him off. Before either of them could speak though, he heard Derek say Spencer’s name quietly and the younger of the two closed his mouth without speaking. When Delilah spoke before Tony could, he decided to let her handle things trusting she was more familiar with how to handle people of Jack’s rank.

“I’m sure Dr. Reid didn’t intend to imply you were lying and that the base doesn’t exist. While Dr. Reid and SSA Morgan’s BAU team did deal with a number of high-profile cases, we both know dealing with important civilians is different than dealing with high ranking military types. He probably is less familiar than Special Agent DiNozzo and myself with the concept of off the book locations the size of a military base, which I am guessing the Cheyenne Mountain base is.”

“This is a new team, and this is a high-profile case,” Tony interjected when Jack didn’t reply immediately. “There’s bound to be some growing pains as we adjust to both each other, but on top of that SSA Morgan and Dr. Reid will have to adjust to working mostly in a military setting. A couple things that Morgan and Reid don’t know is that not only do you and I have a personal relationship, but Brig. Gen. Carter was a longtime close friend of yours. So, this case hits close to home on a number of levels for you. I’m guessing that the Air Force Base is hidden underneath NORAD?”

Jack nodded and took a long drink of his coffee before speaking. “Yeah, we’ve used a connection to NORAD as a cover story for anyone who found out about the base without the correct security clearance level for years. As to the rank discrepancy, Sam was scheduled to be promoted to Brig. Gen. and then take over Cheyenne from the current commander Hank Landry. After she was killed, I made sure that she would still get her promotion and her burial would recognize her higher ranking.”

“I apologize, Lt. General O’Neill, I lost someone important to me at the beginning of the year myself. So, I can empathize with your loss. It wasn’t my intention to accuse you of lying. Sometimes I forget to stop and think about my question before I ask it. Theoretically, I knew that classified bases exist, but Agent Fielding is correct in that I have almost no familiarity with them. I assume the classified nature of the posting has something to do with the more or less part of your answer?”

Jack nodded after flashing a weak smile. “After Dr. Jackson brief’s you, you’ll understand what I mean by more or less. Please, call me Jack. If things work out, you guys will be Tony’s team and I hope that we’ll all be able to get to know each other. I don’t much stand on formality unless I have to.”

Tony released a sigh, happy that things were worked out so smoothly. When the Doctor asked one last question though, Tony’s jaw dropped. This time though his shock was for a different reason.

“One last question, this Dr. Jackson that we’re waiting on. Is it the same Dr. Daniel Jackson who wrote the papers on his theories involving cross-pollination of ancient cultures and the Egyptian pyramids being landing sites for alien spaceships and were far older than previously thought?”

All Tony could think was holy fuck.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

After Dr. Daniel Jackson filled the four of them in on their new reality that apparently really did involve aliens, Tony insisted on three of the four members of his team available going to see the site where the body had been dumped. Spencer wasn’t sure what to think of his new team leader, but like most things he was willing to keep an open mind until he had enough information to make an informed decision. Delilah was apparently staying behind to start her digging around in the SGC’s personnel files.

The three members who had gone out in the field, Spencer, Derek, and Tony, were currently at the abandoned train depot where Brig. Gen. Carter had been found. Spencer and Derek were checking out the area while Tony talked to the Local PD. So far, Spencer thought he’d spent more time studying Tony than he had the scene, and knew he’d have to get his head in the right mindset. He couldn’t help his preoccupation though.

The only real team leaders that he’d ever known were Gideon and Hotch, and this DiNozzo didn’t seem to be anything like either one of them. If he resembled anyone from his former team, it would probably be Rossi, but even that didn’t seem like a perfect comparison.

As he was watching DiNozzo, Spencer saw one of the Detectives hand Tony a file and what appeared to be evidence. From the look on Tony’s face, he would guess that the other man wasn’t pleased by something. If he had to guess, Reid would say it was the evidence that had been held back, but since the former NCIS agent was a stranger it was hard to say for sure. DiNozzo had informed them on the drive over that he’d worked for the Baltimore PD at one time as a Detective. Spencer couldn’t help but wonder how that relationship had ended. From the tone of the man’s voice when he offered the tidbit, Reid would guess it hadn’t ended well.

“Spencer, I don’t think we’re going to get much from this place,” Derek admitted pulling his attention back to the task at hand. “According to the file we got, this isn’t where Carter was killed. I don’t even understand what we’re doing if they have someone who confessed.”

“You know confessions don’t always equal guilt,” Spencer reminded thinking back to the information Brig. Gen. O’Neill shared with them while they were waiting. “General O’Neill said there was no way that the man who confessed could have done everything he claimed on his own.”

“And how do we know the General didn’t kill her?” Derek shot back looking toward the back of the graffiti covered wall at the back of the depot. “For all we know he murdered this woman and this is all one big coverup. I mean, I know that they had all those pictures, but are we really supposed to believe that…”

“SSA Morgan, do I need to remind you what a goddamned Non-Disclosure Agreement means?”

Spencer stood and turned to see DiNozzo standing behind them with what was definitely evidence bags in his hands and a thunderous expression on his face. They were saved from having to hear the answer immediately, when Tony suggested they move the discussion back to the SUV if the two of them were done. Once inside the vehicle though with DiNozzo driving and Spencer in the passenger’s seat, it was made clear the temporary leader was not done.

“I can assure you that they were not kidding about the big damned hole they’ll drop you in, Morgan, if you can’t keep your mouth shut. You were given an opportunity to walk away if you can’t deal with this. I understand that we had a lot of information dumped on us. I assumed though that anyone who had worked for the BAU would understand the concept of confidentiality and Big Damned Secrets.”

Spencer turned his gaze to Derek, who was sitting behind them to see a mulish expression on his best friend’s face. He knew that this was hard for Derek to accept. Spencer remembered Morgan’s reaction to the case they’d worked where Emily’s friend had been killed by a demon, and Derek’s hell no reaction to the suggestion that the real killer had been anything but human. He also believed that if his friend would just give it a chance that he’d be really good at this. Protecting the world was just the kind of thing that he believed his friend was made for. They just had to get past his black and white view of things first.

“As for Jack being guilty, I can assure you that he has an ironclad alibi,” Tony assured only to have Derek huff.

“I suppose we’re supposed to believe that you’d never lie for your partner. That’s not how the world works, but maybe they do things differently at NCIS.”

When DiNozzo just cocked his head to one side and smirked at Derek, Spencer winced. Maybe bringing Derek along wasn’t the best idea that he’d ever had.

“Oh, I’m not any part of Jack’s alibi. I was helping another team with an undercover job and didn’t see him until well after Brig. Gen.. Carter was killed. However, I am fairly confident that almost anyone would consider the Secretary of Defense, the Director of Homeland Security, the Chief of Staff of the US Air Force and the President of the United States worthy alibis. So, you have until tomorrow morning to make up your mind, SSA Morgan.

“If you show up tomorrow for our transfer to Cheyenne Mountain then I expect you to be all onboard. I will not have you tainting either this investigation or this team with your outright hostility. I can handle a certain level of skepticism, but I will not have a repeat of your blatant disdain and the disrespect that you showed both General O’Neill and Dr. Jackson. Neither of them deserved it. I would think that someone who worked as a profiler and expected people to believe you can find a killer just by studying a scene and a few random tidbits of information to be a little more open minded.”

“That isn’t…” Spencer started but when DiNozzo held up his hand he stopped.

“I am not trying to degrade what you did, Dr. Reid. I am a very big believer in what a good profiler can bring to the team and have taken some classes in that area myself. I’m just trying to make a point. I don’t expect everything to be smooth going right now. I understand that there’s a learning curve for all of us, and more so for you and SSA Morgan. What I won’t tolerate is people being jerks just to be jerks.”

When Tony turned the discussion back to the case, Spencer found himself relieved. Derek needed time to get used to the idea, and Reid needed time to talk him around. Neither of which could happen while they were standing at the scene.

“What are either of your first impressions of this case?”

“It seems to me like there’s a really obvious choice for who is behind all of this, and I don’t understand why this team was needed to figure that out,” Derek offered a little more sharply than maybe was needed. When DiNozzo just nodded looking to be deep in thought, Spencer hoped he’d get away with it.

“Yeah, I agree,” DiNozzo commented, and the surprise on Derek’s face was obvious and not quickly hidden. “It seems to me that Gen. Landry is the most obvious suspect. Now, obviously, we’re going to have to see if there is any evidence to back that up. I am not interested in the least in assuming anyone’s guilt at this point beyond the people we know can’t be guilty. I have a guess about why we’re actually here, but I’ll need to talk to Jack some more to figure it out. Hopefully once we reach wherever they’re gonna stuff us at in the Mountain I’ll have more information.

“Since we’re going to be splitting up once we get back to the Pentagon, Dr. Reid, Jack asked me to give you this letter. Apparently, there’s someone at the mountain that you know. This person didn’t want you to be caught off guard if you see them tomorrow.”

Surprised, Spencer just stared at the letter for a moment, but eventually took it, stuffing it quickly into his bag to read once he got home.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

When Tony and Jack got home, he was glad to see that they had a little bit of time before Morrow arrived. After they got back to the Pentagon, Derek and Spencer left while Tony headed back upstairs to see how Delilah was doing and bug Jack. After both of those tasks were completed, he found a quiet spot, and called Morrow to express his concern over Derek Morgan.

Tony wasn’t surprised to hear that Morgan hadn’t been their first choice. Rather, Dr. Reid had asked that they include him, and they’d given in after seeing SSA Morgan’s record. They all still had time to turn down the job offer. Tony, McGee, Derek, and Spencer wouldn’t be signing their paperwork transferring them all to Homeland Security until the morning. Delilah it seemed would be remaining an employee of the Dept. of Defense, which made her placement make more sense.

orrow assured Tony that Derek would work out if given the chance to wrap his head around such a huge secret. To help with Tony’s doubts though, Tom offered to come over that night with someone he thought would be able to ease Tony’s mind. Promising nothing more than burgers and fries with maybe a salad for dinner, the offer was accepted.

When Morrow arrived, Tony was pleasantly surprised to see his future boss Aaron Hotchner accompanying him. After introductions and the explanation was given, Tony invited the man who instructed him to call him Hotch to the music room where they could talk. While the library was Jack’s go to place for conversations with his work associates, the music room was Tony’s. It was his domain in the house, and Tony’s instincts told him he could trust Hotchner to respect the space.

The end result of the conversation found Tony much more accepting of specifically Morgan, but his new situation as a whole. While he’d never met Hotchner, Tony did know of the man’s reputation. Not only that, but the two of them had hit it off rather quickly, which didn’t happen with Tony much those days. Being cynical was one of the things he couldn’t blame on Gibbs. No, his cynicism where people were concerned was all a product of Senior.

Hotchner assured him that not only would Derek calm down if given the time, but that eventually he thought the two of them would get along well. The conversation then turned to each of their hopes and expectations for the team, and Tony felt himself relax further when Hotchner assured him that his place as Second in Command was not in question. When Tony explained how things worked on Team Gibbs, the former Unit Chief had been horrified, and assured him that he had no desire for such a murky chain of command.

Tony was pleasantly surprised that he and Hotchner had a mutual friend in Seeley Booth, whom apparently Hotchner had talked to the second he found out they were friends. Apparently, Morrow had passed on the bit of information knowing that they’d met during a joint case he’d assigned Tony to during his time as Director of NCIS. Hotchner promised Tony that he didn’t mind Tony doing the same.

Once Tony was done talking to Hotchner, he showed the other man to the library to join Jack and Tom and then excused himself to go change. While in the bedroom, Tony did called Seeley Boothe. After swearing that they’d get together once he was back in town to play basketball, Tony grilled his friend about not just Hotchner, but also Morgan and Reid whom it seemed Seeley knew less well, but did have some familiarity with. In the end, it was his friend’s assurances that Morgan would calm down after accepting whatever secret it was Tony couldn’t share.

“Morgan is a damned good Agent. Sometimes he just has to get past his black and white view of things, which you know I have a problem with myself. I mean, you remember how we butted heads at the beginning? Now look at us. I don’t know Dr. Reid well, but I’ve heard him talked about at the Smithsonian.

“I think he helps Brennan sometimes. I know that he has a really good reputation and is incredibly smart. From what I’ve heard though, unlike that jackass McGee you work with, Reid doesn’t act like it makes him better than anyone else. He’ll be good for your Probie. He’ll certainly bring him down a peg or two. Good luck with whatever it is, and if you need me holler. I’ll sign whatever you need if you need my help, man. That’s what friends do. I’m really glad you’re out of that cesspool.”

So, after promising, again, that they’d get together as soon as possible, Tony said his goodbyes and then rejoined the others. Later that evening, after Morrow and Hotchner had gone home once dinner was done, Tony sat out back on the swing next to Jack holding hands and looking up at the stars with a new appreciation.

“Why are you calling us in to investigate Sam’s death when I would bet every penny that I have that you know Landry is behind this?” Tony asked quietly and then sat without speaking, even when it seemed like Jack wasn’t going to.

“I hired him. I’m the one that put Hank in that seat, and I’m the one that didn’t act on the whispers quickly enough. I chalked them up to gossip and sour apples because no one would come forward officially. That makes it my fault that Sam’s dead, and God only knows what other messes are waiting for you at the mountain. I need a full picture of what he’s done, and I need a recommendation for who to replace him with that I can trust. I tried to quit, but the President wouldn’t let me.”

“Oh, Jack,” Tony breathed before turning as much as he could on the wooden swing and wrapped his arms around his partner. “It’s not your fault. Sam’s death is not your fault, even if Landry is guilty. It just makes him a conniving bastard and I will space him myself after I put a bullet in his brain.”

“I’m not new to this, Jack. There is no fucking way you people are letting Landry go to any prison located on earth. I know what I said last night, but as you said then things are different now that I know the whole story. So, unless you have a prison off planet somewhere then I am well aware that Landry won’t survive if it turns out he’s guilty.

“This isn’t my first rodeo. I’m not sure how Morgan and Reid will take it. McGee will be shocked if he finds out. Sometimes he’s still a little wide eyed and innocent, but my guess is Fielding will know the score and set him straight. A man like Hotchner sure as fuck will understand. It’s not… your… fault.”

Jack didn’t answer, but the way he held onto Tony that night in bed, said everything that the younger partner needed to know.